Small cars, SUVs top the choices

April 27, 2003|By Jim Sulski.

More than 40 percent of first-time buyers purchase a small car, according to Carol Elder, a research analyst with AutoPacific, an automotive product and consulting firm. Another 20 percent or so buy a sport-utility vehicle. Another 15 percent buy a mid-size car, and slightly less than 10 percent buy a pickup.

"I would say 45 percent of the Honda Civics we sell go to the first-time buyer," said Michael Clark, of River Oaks Honda in Calumet City.

The remaining first-time buyers opted for a sports car or a luxury car, and fewer than 2 percent purchase a minivan.

"Another reason first-time buyers gravitate toward cars such as the Corolla and the Civic is because that's what their parents gave them to drive while they were in high school or college," said Art Spinella, general manager of CNW Marketing Research, a Bandon, Ore.-based consulting firm for the auto industry.

"The natural place to go for a first-time buyer is a small car or a small SUV," said George Peterson, president of AutoPacific. "Given their income levels, the first-time buyer is not ready to spend much more than the median price for those types of vehicles.

"And it's highly unlikely that first-time buyers are interested in minivans," Peterson added. usually "They don't have dogs and kids to haul around."